Just like it says, Popcorn Shorts is about the kind of things we think are really interesting, but don’t really need a large article to explain them. From the sublime to the ridiculous, check in here for crunchy bits of info you’ll love to munch. By the way, much (but not all) of our delicious Popcorn comes from articles we’ve posted on our Facebook page. If you’re on Facebook, please stop by and “Like” us and we’ll keep a fairly-constant-but-not-frequent-enough-to-be-annoying stream of these coming to your virtual door!
Yes, Virginia, there is a Fashion Santa Claus
Many people don’t realize Santa wasn’t always Santa. Before 1931 there was no “standardized” Santa; he appeared as everything from a human to an elf until Coca Cola turned him into a jolly, fat, elfin human. Kris Kringle underwent another transformation this year, as Toronto’s Yorkdale Shopping Centre revamped him for a new generation with Fashion Santa. Model Paul Mason personifies the svelte and stylish Santa, who has been getting a lot of attention on-line. Santa’s been great for the shopping center, but even better for the SickKids Foundation which gets $1 for every selfie posted under the hashtag #YorkdaleFashionSanta (up to $10K). A Merry and Fashionable Christmas to us all!
Don’t waste your time with today’s education
Dave Brown, otherwise known as Boyinaband, made a rap video of himself commenting on the state of education. Don’t run away yet… almost 7 million people have viewed this video so far! Dave walks down a British country lane explaining all the things he didn’t learn in school… things like first aid, basic finance, helping suicidal friends, or the basic laws of the country, compared to the things he did learn, like the quadratic equation or Henry VII’s love life. It’s making an impact as English teachers are attempting to bring more life-competency education in their classes, responding to the prompting of their students.
Where Christmas really comes from
The magic of Christmas means time spent with your family making cookies, hand-painting ornaments, and hand-making gifts for the people you care about. Of course, that’s horse puckey. No matter how special it might remain, the hand-madeness of Christmas is a thing of the past. Christmas today means plastic junk hung by the chimney with care. If you think those cheap baubles come from elves at the North Pole, you’re wrong. Almost universally they come from China’s factory cities, and there’s a price to be paid. Don’t let it get your Holidays down, but this tour of Chinese Christmas producers may really give you something to think about!
50 years of a Charlie Brown Christmas
One of our all-time favorite animated shows, holiday or not, is the classic “A Charlie Brown Christmas”. It’s not just on TV again this year (and on every net-TV service available) but this is the 50th year it’s been on… this is the 50th anniversary of A Charlie Brown Christmas! Click here to learn about some of the behind-the-scenes stories of the production of this holiday tradition, including such gems as the Coca-Cola product placement and deleted scenes you may never have seen. And since one of the best parts is the music, click here for a taste of one of the iconic Charlie Brown Christmas tunes.
